Ignorance is Innocence
by Chloryl
Summary: It was only because of his injuries that he couldn't return home on that fateful night. As a result, the ANBU of Konohagakure collectively agreed to keep Sasuke in the dark.
1. Reluctance

Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

* * *

She was giving him such a creepy, affectionate smile, he felt a sudden urge be sick.

Sasuke glowered back at the nurse, who didn't seem to notice.

"Ah, Sasuke-chan," she simpered, rearranging his blankets for the millionth time. "Your arm will be _perfectly _fine by tomorrow. I'm certain you'll make a _full _recovery!"

His eyebrow twitched. "I'm fine right now. Can I go home?"

The nurse looked stupefied. She fluttered her hands helplessly, reminding Sasuke of a demonic butterfly he and Itachi had once trapped. The memory brought a smile to his lips.

Finally, she seemed to be able to articulate her thoughts, but her voice was oddly shrill. "Absolutely not! I will not discharge you from the hospital until you recover completely and fully, do you understand?"

Sasuke glared at the ceiling, nonplussed by the sudden change in tone. He resolved to plan his escape _after _that hyperactive lady left him alone. Once her shift was over, he would finally have his chance to break out of the wretched hospital. Though…she would certainly be suspicious if he agreed with her plans all of a sudden. He decided to play along.

"But my parents," he whined. "They'll be worried if I don't get home before it gets dark."

The nurse trilled with high-pitched laughter. "Oh don't worry, Sasuke-chan. I'll explain everything to Mikoto-san. It's not the first time you've hurt yourself during practice."

Sasuke nodded, trying to keep an annoyed expression on his face. "But it is the first time I'm being kept in the hospital _overnight_."

"Call me when you need me," she said, ignoring his remark. She stepped outside the door, waving vigorously at him. "I'll be in the lobby."

Sasuke nodded again and waited for her footsteps to die away. When he was sure the coast was clear, he kicked off his blankets and prepared to crawl off the mattress. To his dismay, he found that he could not move. Something was restraining his body…

He was strapped to the hospital bed.

-:-

They found him there at dawn, standing over his parents' dead bodies, still waiting for Sasuke. Still clad in his ANBU uniform. He hadn't reacted when they filed into the room, but he knew they were there. And he knew why they were there.

"Uchiha Itachi," the first masked figure, presumably the leader, was unmistakeably male. He spoke with a calm authority, but Itachi could detect was a strange undertone of fear. This man had clearly been spooked by the bloody scene outside, Itachi decided in grim satisfaction. His eyes flickered to each of the assembled ANBU, then back to the corpses on the floor. This would be interesting. He hadn't expected they would send anyone after him, much less his former colleagues.

"An explanation, Itachi." The second voice was much softer and hesitant, and it was trembling slightly. He was unable to hide his emotions as well as the Buntaicho, it seemed. How interesting. It made it all the more appealing of a challenge.

"To test my abilities," Itachi lied smoothly, his face kept perfectly composed. He could feel four pairs of disbelieving eyes on him, waiting. Waiting. A muscle in his cheek twitched.

"You're lying," the squad leader said flatly, adjusting his stance so that he was blocking the doorway.

"Prove it." Itachi was almost smiling now. He was enjoying himself immensely.

A third ANBU, a woman in a striped cat mask, stepped towards him. Her comrades cried out in warning, but she ignored them. She held out one finger.

"One word," she said, her voice like steel.

Itachi's smile widened in anticipation. "That was two words, Yugao," he said lightly. The other three ANBU flinched. Itachi was intrigued but somewhat disappointed that she had neither reacted at the recognition nor at the contemptuous comment. Her eyes glinted dangerously from behind her porcelain mask, but otherwise she gave no sign that she had heard.

"Danzo."

Yugao watched as an expression of shock crossed Itachi's face. Then the smile returned almost instantly, but it was strained. He knew she could tell. There was no point in trying to hide it. "And if I deny it?" he asked, his voice deadly calm.

The Buntaicho strode forwards until he was standing beside Yugao. He pointed at him, his fingers trembling ever so slightly. "That was as good as a confession, Uchiha."

Itachi examined his fingernails, trying to appear disinterested. He didn't answer, and neither did they expect him to.

Yugao spoke again. "You're waiting for Sasuke."

Again, it was a statement. Itachi was impressed. "It looks like you've done your research well," he said, allowing amusement to leak into his voice.

She stiffened. "If you think we'd let you confront him, Itachi, you're sorely mistaken. The poor kid has had enough to deal with. There is no need to break him further. He doesn't need to know. And you will not be the one to tell him, I'll make sure of it personally."

Itachi's lips curved into a tense smile. So that was why…! He activated his Sharingan and everyone but Yugao recoiled. "So you kidnapped him? Is this why I've been waiting for nine hours and he still hasn't come home?"

"No. He was wounded during shuriken training." She narrowed her eyes. "Don't even think about telling him, Itachi. We've forcibly restrained him in the hospital and stationed half the ANBU forces to guard him until we've decided what to do. So think before you act rashly. And if you're still intent on telling Sasuke that you were the one who killed the entire Uchiha clan, I'll take you out myself."

"Is that so?" Itachi mused.

Yugao's gaze was icy. "We know the truth, Uchiha. We'll keep Sasuke safe from Danzo for you. On one condition."

"Tempting," said Itachi grimly. He closed his eyes. "And what…_condition_ might that be?"

"You must never reveal the truth to you brother. He must never find out that you played a role in the massacre, especially not from you. It would shatter him beyond repair, and you wouldn't want that, would you?"

Itachi's face hardened. "Who are you to tell me what I want or don't want?"

"Hokage-sama recognizes the love you still hold for your brother, regardless of how hard you've tried to hide it over the past year," she said coldly, her gaze penetrating. She shifted slightly and drew her katana. "If you don't consent to our terms, we won't hesitate to take your life. Your death would fit the storyline quite well, anyhow."

"How remarkable," Itachi said, realization dawning on him. "You're going to tell Sasuke that _I _had been killed in the massacre as well?"

Yugao nodded stiffly. "Hokage-sama feels it is the only way to protect him. You _do _want him to seek you out in vengeance, am I correct?"

"Perceptive as always," he spat, his anger and despair at the situation finally getting to him. "So I have no choice."

She blinked owlishly at him and sheathed her sword. "Do we have a deal?"

"Hai," Itachi snapped.

"Excellent," said the Buntaicho, relief seeping into his voice. "Now we'll take you into custody and –"

"Do you really think I'll come peacefully?" Itachi interrupted, a hard glint entering his eye. "I won't go back on my word, but rest assured, I won't go down without a fight. Mangekyou Sharingan!"

A heartbeat later, the four ANBU crumpled to the floor, unconscious. Itachi sighed and hopped nimbly onto the windowsill. He tried to convince himself that it couldn't be helped. Then he turned around and took one last fleeting look at his dead parents before fleeing into the night.

* * *

This story was originally a random idea that I had to ease some writer's block. Though, I'm really enjoying writing this. Heh heh heh...


	2. Silence

Sasuke would've liked to say that he took the news well.

The truth was, he wanted nothing more than to strangle himself for his stupidity and blow up the hospital ten times over. It didn't help when the Hokage had shed a tear for him, looking so sad and old. He needed no one's pity, especially not the old man's. They confined him to the hospital for another month, which was downright outrageous for something as trivial as a broken arm. Yet, they all knew, by unspoken consent that it was not his arm.

It was his heart.

Their deaths came as a terrible blow. Now, all Sasuke dearly wished for was that he had died alongside his clan. His family. Fate was cruel to keep him alive. Why couldn't he have departed this wretched life in the loving embrace of his parents and brother? Why had he been the only one who was spared, merely because he had gotten hurt during training?

They never did tell him the precise details of what happened. Sasuke didn't ask because he had a feeling he didn't want to know. All he knew was that several missing-nins from an enemy shinobi village had slaughtered his clan almost overnight. The ANBU were cleaning up the scene of the crime and he was forbidden to return to the Uchiha compound until every trace of the massacre was removed. It would be like before, they assured him. Everything would go back to normal. Only, it wouldn't.

Sasuke was miserable. It was the way they kept looking at him, their concerned, almost frightened expressions that irked him. Only the Hokage didn't seem scared. Rather, he always looked sorrowful and pensive when Sasuke caught him looking at him. And that was worse.

Additionally, the hospital people still had him strapped down to the bed. It was as if they were worried he would run away or jump off the hospital roof. All things considered, he knew it was most likely the latter option that they were protecting him from. They knew his sentiments as well has he did, oddly enough. Sasuke had simply lost the will to live.

He lay in the now familiar bed, tears pouring silently down his cheeks. Mother, Father, nii-san…they were all gone forever. And they had left him, Sasuke, all alone in this world. He had no one left.

So what was the point of living?

-:-

"Hokage-sama. We have a problem."

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked up in mild interest. The village seemed to be riddled with problems these past few weeks. He wasn't sure if he was imagining it, but they all seemed to center around Uchiha Sasuke.

"The child is attracting more trouble than he is worth," Danzo had insisted at a council meeting. To make matters worse, Homura and Koharu had sided unquestioningly with him.

"The child is the last of the Uchiha clan," Hiruzen had rebuked them calmly. "What are you suggesting, Danzo?"

The man's face had hardened, and there was a strange, almost guilty glint in his eye. He must have guessed that Hiruzen suspected that he had played a role in the massacre. "I'm merely telling you that making sacrifices is necessary to protect our village. It seems as though you may have forgotten, Hiruzen."

He had bowed his head, allowing his Hokage hat to conceal his face. "I assure you that I have not. But just as every shinobi of the Leaf Village is, Uchiha Sasuke is under _my _protection. It is my responsibility."

Danzo had flinched then, and his left eye observed him shrewdly. He could not possibly have missed the underlying implication. Although Hiruzen hadn't realized it then, it was at that moment that Danzo made up his mind to assassinate the last Uchiha, no matter what it took.

Izumo cleared his throat and Hiruzen looked up again. The chunin's normally serious face was pale and sweaty. "It's…Sasuke."

Hiruzen should have guessed. He nodded stiffly. "Thank you. I'll be at the hospital in a moment."

-:-

"Sasuke."

He didn't respond, but gazed distractedly at the ceiling, as if he were seeing something else rather than the whitewashed surface.

Hiruzen sighed. He was worried something like this might happen. "Sasuke," he repeated, this time more gently. "Are you angry that we're still keeping you locked up in this room?" It was for his own protection, not that he could tell him that.

Sasuke still did not answer. His dark eyes were glazed, distant, and red-rimmed. With a jolt, Hiruzen realized that he had been crying just moments before. It struck him as odd. Sasuke hadn't cried even once since he found out about the Uchiha massacre. Hiruzen was more than impressed. The child was only at a tender age of seven, yet he outwardly expressed neither fear nor grief. He was insufferably proud, much like his brother.

Izumo interrupted his reverie at that precise moment. "Hokage-sama, it has been over five weeks, and Sasuke refuses to utter a single word."

"Is that so?" Hiruzen murmured, his thoughts whirring. Izumo nodded solemnly.

"He's just gone completely mute. He doesn't respond to anything we say, and he just looks at us with that strange, far-away look in his eyes."

The Hokage gazed thoughtfully at Sasuke, who indeed seemed to be just as Izumo had just described. Sasuke was still in the same position as he was before, looking intently at the ceiling above.

"Sasuke?"

There was no answer. It was just as he expected. Izumo bit his lip, wondering if he should speak. After a long silence, he cleared his throat respectfully. "Are you worried, Lord Hokage?"

Hiruzen laughed heartily, surprising them both. Even Sasuke started, if only slightly. "No, of course not, Izumo. Sasuke will recover of his own accord. He is still young, and there will come the day when he recognizes there is more to family than having them there with him all the time. Just give him time and space, and he will recover very soon. Isn't that right, Sasuke?"

Sasuke eyed him reproachfully and shook his head.

Hiruzen smiled, satisfied. "As you can see, Izumo. This is exactly what I meant."

* * *

Gah, I wish I made this chapter a bit longer, but I couldn't fit anything else within the rigid timeframe I set for myself without rambling on and on about Sasuke's feelings. No worries, he doesn't stay depressed for long, as the ending implies. Thanks for reading this, guys! :D


	3. Redemption

Of all the things Sasuke could have done in his miserable state of mind, he had to go out and get himself a rival.

If you asked him, he would have said that it was all Naruto's fault.

And he would never _ever _admit that the rivalry was his salvation.

He had been sitting on the shoreline, abnormally close to the water's edge, gazing dully at his own reflection. The sunset flared a beautiful pattern of reddish hues in the sky, which was echoed by the water's surface. Sasuke spent his days gazing at the lake, brooding, sulking, wallowing in his misery. Never once did he appreciate the beauty of nature, too caught up in his own unhappiness. Yet…he was also _content_. In a twisted way. At least the old man finally allowed him to venture outside the Uchiha compound without at least ten ANBU guards stationed around him at all times. If Sasuke was getting tired of them, they must be getting plenty tired of him. Not that ANBU would complain, of course.

His brother never did.

And now, he was choking back a sob that threatened to rise out of his throat. Stupid thoughts. They always seemed to venture back into the front of his mind when he was so _at peace._

He was fairly certain that the Hokage had sent some disguised ANBU to trail him, despite his outward leniency. There was that one time a shopkeeper had tried to stab him with a giant katana – what kind of shopkeeper owned a katana anyways?! And what kind of a random bystander would have the speed and skill to recognize the killer intent and intercept it with their own freakishly long sword? That purple-haired lady that saved his neck had been an ANBU, he was certain. Even disguised as a civilian, Yugao was unquestionably an identifiable figure.

Besides, civilians didn't kill shopkeepers.

Sasuke smiled faintly. The lady had told him to watch his back. "These are people who are after your life, Sasuke," she had warned, before departing the store with the dead body slung over her shoulder.

"Why?" he had asked, a sense of callous joy coursing through his veins. So he wasn't the only one that wanted himself dead. There were others too. Such a pity the Hokage was bent on keeping him alive.

"When you are older, perhaps…it will be wiser to tell you then."

Sasuke gazed at the sparkling surface of the water, his eyes slowly closing. He knew that if he fell into the lake, someone would catch him. There always was. And if there was no one…then that suited him just fine.

That was when he sensed _his _presence. It first struck him as odd. The ANBU were skilled shinobi, expert at concealing themselves, they could even hide their chakra signatures. At least, from an eight-year-old kid who couldn't even dream of being a sensor specialist. So why then, could he sense someone's chakra nearby? Surely it wasn't an ANBU member slipping up in his defences. So naturally, Sasuke turned his head. He was an inquisitive child after all.

_That kid. _It was that annoying one from the Academy walking home from the direction of the playground. He recognized his yellow-blond hair, his bright blue eyes, and his hideous orange attire. He was the same as ever, as irritating to look at as ever. But something was wrong. Something was definitely missing.

His smile.

Because Sasuke had never seen him without that huge, silly grin of his before. It was what annoyed him the most about the kid, that smile. Because what was there to be happy about? He, like him, had no family. He, like him, had lost everything on one, fateful night. So why smile? Sasuke spent his days with a frown fixed firmly to his face like it was glued there.

Naruto made a face at him. Sasuke mirrored it with equal disgust and humph'd, turning to face the water once more.

That kid. Sasuke had heard whispers and rumours that he was all alone. He had always been alone. His parents had been killed in the nine-tails' attack on the village, he had heard. So…he was lonelier than he. But why then…why was he so _happy?_

Sasuke resolved to find out.

-:-

And he would never understand Naruto. That much he was certain.

"You dobe," Sasuke muttered angrily, pinning Naruto down with ease as the latter struggled to free himself, cursing under his breath. "Why do you insist on sparring with me when you know you'll lose?"

The girls on the sidelines cheered in that annoying fashion of theirs, and Sasuke resisted the urge to shut them up in person.

"Because…" Naruto gasped, trying to push Sasuke away to no avail. "I don't go back on my word. I won't lose to you…every time…just you wait."

Sasuke resisted the urge to shut him up as well.

He stood up, dusted himself off, and walked away haughtily. He left Naruto there, still lying frozen on the ground. He could hear the girls squealing in the distance. But in his ears, he heard Naruto's voice.

"_I won't lose to you…every time…just you wait."_

Sasuke spun around to face him again, his dark eyes filling with resentment.

"You'll never beat me," he informed Naruto calmly.

It was the first time he had felt anything other than sadness and self-pity.

-:-

"Hn."

"I _will _beat you-ttebayo!"

"Hn."

Naruto glared at him. The intensity of his gaze wasn't so much anger as it was jealousy. Sasuke glared back venomously out of sheer habit.

"Why don't you say something else, teme?"

"Hn."

Naruto's glare, not matter how threatening, didn't affect him. Sasuke much preferred a scowl over a ridiculously large smile. He was beginning to enjoy their rivalry, because it meant there was someone paying attention to him in a way that wasn't overprotective or murderous. Naruto was just…resentful. And for some odd reason, it made him happy. He found few reasons to be happy these days. It had been…difficult.

There had been more attempted assassinations over the weeks, growing more and more frequent and preposterous. It was as if the one behind it all was running out of funds to hire experienced shinobi to take his life.

The ANBU guards that always seemed to be lurking just out of observable distance always protected him, much to his annoyance. Initially, there had been incidents of samurai warriors who happened to be strolling around the Uchiha compound, minding their own business. Right. Then there were a couple leaf shinobi, which shocked both Sasuke and his ANBU guards. But nowadays, his attackers were ridiculously unprepared. They were armed with weapons, but they seemed incapable of using them. Worst of all, the ANBU insisted on defending him.

"Like I ever asked for your help!" Sasuke had shouted, his temper rising.

The lead ANBU had turned to him and smiled wryly. "The least you can do is thank us."

Then they had proceeded to incapacitate the assailant, while Sasuke watched in annoyance, his hand still on the kunai in his pocket. The Hokage should stop being so paranoid. Sasuke could take care of himself.

"Why?" he had demanded.

"Because Hokage-sama –"

"No," Sasuke had shaken his head and clenched his fists. "I meant, why are these people after my life?'

She had stared at him dispassionately. "I've told you once before. It would be better if you were older."

"But I'm not a child anymore!" Sasuke had yelled. He was sick of the pretences, sick of no one telling him what was going on. The ANBU had then left without saying another word.

The rivalry with Naruto took his mind off his anger and frustration. He could vent his rage through their pointless battles. He didn't know why the dobe insisted on fighting even though he always lost. But no matter. Deep down, he was happy to do something to take his mind off his misery.

Slowly, the hatred and rage in his eyes faded ever so slightly. The only person that ever noticed was neither himself nor Naruto. It was the one watching him in the shadows, plotting Sasuke's death from a distance.

Danzo.

And from the information he recovered from his dwindling quality of assassins and reconnaissance specialists, he confirmed that it was really that demon fox, that Uzumaki kid who was foiling his plans. Oh, the ANBU could protect the Uchiha brat all they wanted. But in the end, Sasuke's anger would be his undoing. He could see that the child had lost the will to live. In due time, he would allow him to find out that Itachi had been the one who killed his family, and that his traitor of a brother was still alive. He needn't know that Danzo was the one behind all this, of course. That would ruin his plans. Sasuke's hatred would ultimately kill him. It was an ingenious, flawless arrangement. Sasuke would be fuelled by vengeance just as Itachi had previously wanted. The brothers would fight to the death, and the Uchiha clan would be out of the way. Forever. He was impressed with his own intelligence.

Curse Sarutobi to the depths of hell. The old man insisted on protecting the Uchiha, what foolishness. Sasuke needed time to fester his anger, so in a way, the Hokage had done him a favour by keeping him clueless. Danzo would be able to feed the Uchiha just the right amount of truth to break him. He felt like a genius, except...that one thing he had not counted on.

Uzumaki Naruto.

But he had figured it out, so early on in the game. The brat was taking Sasuke's mind off his self-loathing, pain, and anger. And he couldn't have that. So of course, he would do what he did best. It had always worked in the past, after all. All he needed was to remind himself of the Uchiha Massacre which had been such a glorious success. He would eliminate that demon fox once and for all. Konoha would be happy to see him dead. And Sasuke would finally focus on revenge. He would send out his best assassins to do the job.

It was time to kill Naruto.

* * *

This chapter was seriously so much fun to write. Especially the dark, Danzo-esque ending. Honestly I wasn't originally planning it, but I kind of made him out as the bad guy. So most likely, I'll stick to that. Lots of foreshadowing, hehe. Let me know what you think!


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